You Never Stop Loving Somebody
by feathergirl926
Summary: You just start loving somebody else.  A Fiesta story, with Smack angst, and Pac at the end. Read it to find out.


**You never stop loving somebody…**

**So, true to form, my muse awakened at midnight. I seriously get the most random inspirations at very strange times. And, as usual, this was inspired by a song, this time by Big and Rich's "You Never Stop Loving Somebody." They own the song, I do not. You know who owns the characters, and it isn't me. Flashbacks are in italics.**

Your heart doesn't skip a beat when you hear her laugh. You don't get butterflies in your stomach when you stand close to her. At least not any more. But sometimes, when she smiles at you, you can't help but remember.

When you first saw them together, in THAT context, it broke your heart. When you saw her walk into the banquet hall on his arm and saw the look in her eyes when he kissed her softly on the lips, you realized you had lost her. But, then you realized something; she was never yours to lose.

You remember that she looked at you like that once, but you were too caught up in your work, and your past, so you pushed her away, despite the fact that she was the only person who could make you smile and who could drag you out of your bouts of solitude.

And now, here you sit, watching them as they sit and chat at the head table, acting like they are in a world of their own. You remember having a similar feeling the day you married Claire. And you remember the day they announced their engagement like it was yesterday.

_You could tell something was up when they came walking into the break room at the lab that day, holding hands and smiling at each other adoringly._

"_I take it she said yes," Danny inquired._

_They both just smiled as she held up her hand, showing that her left ring finger was now adorned by a rock of considerable size._

"_Oh my God! Congratulations!" Lindsay squeals as she hugs Stella tightly._

"_Hey, be careful with my fiancé, Linds, don't break her before our wedding," Flack says jokingly._

_You congratulate them both, and then remind them that there is work to be done. Lindsay just smiles while rolling her eyes and comments about celebrating after shift._

_The shift goes by quickly, and a sizeable group has gathered to celebrate their engagement at a bar frequented by New York's finest. The women ooh and ahh as they gaze at the ring on her finger. You have to hand it to him, Flack has good taste (in jewelry and in women)._

"_I cannot believe the size of that diamond, Flack certainly has good taste," you hear Peyton gush, echoing your previous thoughts._

"_Seriously, who knew?" Lindsay giggles._

"_What? You didn't know I had good taste? Look at who my future wife is," Flack says as he wraps his arms around his fiancé's waist._

_Stella just rolls her eyes. "Honey, I'm marrying you, you can stop with the corny lines."_

_His response is to kiss her sweetly on the cheek as Danny makes some comment about them being so sweet it might induce a sugar coma. He ducks as Flack throws a handful of pretzels at his head._

_As the celebration dies down, she approaches you and asks to talk to you alone, so the two of you retreat to a quiet corner of the bar. You smile and congratulate her again._

"_Thanks, Mac," she says as she takes a seat. "So, Don and I were talking last night, about some possibilities for our wedding. We know it's not traditional, but I would really like you to be my honor attendant. You don't have to say yes, but you are my best friend, and I would really like you to stand with me, Mac."_

_You smile faintly as you think about it._

"_I don't have to walk Danny down the aisle do I?"_

"_No!" she laughs. "I was thinking you could walk me down the aisle." _

_And all you can do is smile lightly as she kisses you on the cheek when you agree._

_As you lay in bed that night, you can't help but think of lost chances. You had your chance with her. Hell, you had multiple chances, years of chances. But you were a coward and now she is marrying someone else. _

_A few weeks later you hear a soft knock on your door. You open the door to find her crying. You usher her into your apartment, and guide her to the couch. You try to get her to tell you what is going on, but all you can understand thanks to her sobs are the words "fight" and "wedding." They fought about the wedding?_

_After about an hour she has finally calmed down enough so that you can understand what it is that she is saying. She explains that he came home after shift, and she asked him how his day was. Apparently it was a very long, difficult shift, and he wasn't in the mood to talk. True to form, she WAS in the mood to talk, particularly about the wedding. They had been discussing wedding locations previously, a source of disagreement, and when she brought it up that night, it set off a major argument. And now, here she is in your apartment, sobbing, again._

"_Is this a sign," she wonders aloud. "I mean, at the beginning of our relationship I had my doubts. We have a lot in common but there are a lot of things we don't have in common. We're both extremely stubborn, and that can lead to problems, as evidence in our inability to agree on a location. And then there is always the age difference. I am eight years older than him. There are so many things pointing to the possibility that this will never work."_

"_But there is one sure-fire thing that points to a definite possibility that it will," you hear yourself saying, despite the fact that you are pushing her into is arms yet again._

"_What's that?"_

"_Love, Stella. You love him, don't you?"_

_She nods._

"_And he loves you, trust me. I see the look in his eyes every time he looks at you. He adores you, and has for some time. Marriages are not easy. Hell, relationships in general are not easy. But when two people love each other like you and Don do and are willing to work at the marriage, there is definite hope for it working out. I can't tell the future but I am pretty confident when I say that your marriage is one that will last."_

_Her sniffles have died down considerably, and now she is just sitting there, with a stunned look on her face. Then, you see it. A smile has started to grace her lips._

"_Wow, Mac, that was quite the speech. Never pictured you for a romantic."_

"_I have my moments," you tell her with a smirk on your face. "But in all seriousness, Stella. Just talk to him. You guys can work this out._

_Just then, her cell phone rings. You recognize it as some Greek love ballad, so you can only guess who is calling._

"_Speak of the devil," she says, just before she flips open the phone. "Hey, hon."_

_There is silence for a few minutes, and then she is crying again, but this time they are tears of happiness._

"_I know, and I'm sorry, too. Look, I am over at Mac's place, just give me 20 minutes and I will be home, and we can talk then."_

_Another pause._

"_Ok, I will. I love you, too."_

_She hangs up, and then turns to you._

"_Well, I should be heading home. Don and I have some things to discuss. Thanks again, Mac. For everything."_

"_No problem, Stell."_

_You walk her to the door, and she places a light kiss on your cheek._

"_Good night, Mac. See you at work tomorrow."_

"_G'night Stella."_

_And as you close the door, your heart aches. But just for a brief moment. Because you realize that despite the pain you felt when you realized what they had was more than a mere fling they really are good together, they just fit together. You realize that despite what you felt for her, he is better for her than you could ever have been. You realize that she never really smiled at you the way she smiles at him. You realize that he brings something out in her that only he can. And while those realizations may kill you inside, you also realize that she is truly happy, with him, so you do what you have to do and you move on. And your heart is finally at peace about it._

The end of their song and the clinking of glasses brings you out of your reverie. It is time to deliver your speech.

"When Stella first asked me to be her honor attendant, I was more than a little surprised. I said yes, provided I didn't have to walk Danny down the aisle," you say, as everyone laughs.

"Hey, you could do worse than walking me down the aisle, Mac," Danny says, feigning indignation.

"Anyway, as I was saying, I was surprised when Stella asked me to be her honor attendant. It's not exactly traditional, but nothing about this couple is. To be honest, I was surprised when I found out that Stella and Don were seeing each other. But, that shock gave way to understanding as to why these two were together. It's quite simple, actually. Love. They love each other. It was obvious in the way that they interacted with one another, the way they talked to one another. And in the way that they look at each other, like there are no other people in the world, except for them. And here we are today, celebrating their love, and I am happy for them for finding something truly unique in this world. Congratulations, Don and Stella Flack. You guys deserve all the happiness and love that I know you alone can bring one another."

As you finish your speech to loud applause, you look out to all of those in attendance and see quite a few women, and men, dabbing their eyes. They both hug you, and thank you for the wonderful speech before Danny, the best man, delivers his speech.

A few minutes later you watch them dance their first dance as husband and wife. You hear a distinctive voice from behind.

"That was a wonderful speech, Detective Taylor."

"Thank you, Doctor."

"They are adorable, aren't they?" she asks as she gazes at the dancing couple, who look like they are in their own world again.

"That they are, that they are," you reply. You take the woman's hand, and kiss it slightly, a smile now adorning your lips.

"I love you, Mac."

"And I love you, Peyton." And, you realize that while you never stopped loving the woman who is now Mrs. Stella Flack, you just started loving somebody else. And your heart is now finally at rest.

**Ok, so that is that. Kinda sickeningly sweet, but I hope you enjoyed another installment of my midnight ramblings. Read and review please!**

**Oh, and here are the lyrics if you are interested:**

It's complicated, when love has faded

And you can't hold on anymore

You gotta let go even though you know

Your heart's gonna hate it

And it just might break it

_[Chorus:_

You never stop loving somebody

No matter what you tell yourself

You never stop loving somebody

You just, start loving somebody else

The only solution, is making the conclusion

That it's just another lesson in life

Even though it's over,

it's never really over at goodbye

No matter how hard you try

_[Chorus:_

You never stop loving somebody

No matter what you tell yourself

You never stop loving somebody

You just, start loving somebody else

No matter what you say or what you do

Even when you find somebody new

_[Chorus:_

You never stop loving somebody

No matter what you tell yourself

You never stop loving somebody

You just, start loving somebody else

Start loving somebody else


End file.
